PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

New automated process simplifies alignment and splicing of multicore optical fibers

Technique reported at OFC/NFOEC 2013 takes splicing out of the lab, into the production line

New automated process simplifies alignment and splicing of multicore optical fibers
2013-03-12
(Press-News.org) New multicore optical fibers have many times the signal-carrying capacity of traditional single-core fibers, but their use in telecommunications has been severely restricted because of the challenge in splicing them together-- picture trying to match up and connect two separate boxes of spaghetti so that all of the noodles in each box are perfectly aligned. Now, a new splicing technique offers an automated way to do just that, with minimal losses in signal quality across the spliced sections. The method will be described at the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exposition/National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (OFC/NFOEC) in Anaheim, Calif. March 17-21.

In the telecommunications industry, engineers maximize signal-carrying capacity using a process called multiplexing, which allows multiple signals or data streams to be combined within a single fiber cable. One digital phone line, for example, uses 64 kilobits per second of bandwidth, but with a technique called time multiplexing, more than 1.5 million phone conversations can take place at the same time, carried by one fiber core. With wavelength multiplexing, that one fiber core can send up to 200 different wavelengths of light simultaneously, increasing the capacity to 10 terabits per second, serving about 200 million phone lines. Those multiplexed fibers, in turn, can be bundled together into a so-called multicore fiber (MCF), consisting of up to 19 cores—and up to 19 times the signal-carrying capacity.

The challenge, however, is splicing those multicores together.

Researchers who work with MCFs in the lab usually have their own preferred manual processes for aligning and splicing fibers, explains Wenxin Zheng, manager of splice engineering at AFL in Duncan, S.C., who developed the new technique. "Although the manual way may be good for a skilled operator in a lab environment for research purposes, automation is the only path that can push MCF to factories and production lines."

In Zheng's process, which uses a Fujikura FSM-100P+ fusion splicer (see image), the fibers to be spliced are stripped and loaded into the splicer, then rotated and imaged with two video cameras so that their cores can be roughly aligned using a pattern-matching algorithm. Next, using a power-feedback method and image processing, a pair of corresponding cores in each fiber are finely aligned, as is the cladding around the cores. Finally, the cores are heat-spliced.

"To align the multiple cores simultaneously is a big challenge," Zheng says. "If two fibers to be spliced have random core locations, there is no way to align the entire core." However, the component cores of MCFs can be aligned if they are created using the same design standard, and if the cores are distributed symmetrically in the MCF—such as in a seven-core MCF with one central core surrounded by six cores oriented like the spokes of a wagon wheel. In that case, Zheng notes, "we can fine-align one side-core in an MCF and its cladding at the same time. Based on the geometric specifications of the fiber, the rest of the cores will be automatically aligned."

INFORMATION:

Zheng's presentation, "Automated Alignment and Splicing for Multicore Fibers," will take place at 5 p.m. Monday, March 18 at the Anaheim Convention Center.

About OFC/NFOEC

For more than 35 years, the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exposition/National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (OFC/NFOEC) has been the premier destination for converging breakthrough research and innovation in telecommunications, optical networking, fiber optics and, recently, datacom and computing. Consistently ranked in the top 200 tradeshows in the United States, and named one of the Fastest Growing Trade Shows in 2012 by TSNN, OFC/NFOEC unites service providers, systems companies, enterprise customers, IT businesses, and component manufacturers, with researchers, engineers, and development teams from around the world. OFC/NFOEC includes dynamic business programming, an exposition of more than 550 companies, and cutting-edge peer-reviewed research that, combined, showcase the trends and pulse of the entire optical communications industry.

OFC/NFOEC is managed by the Optical Society (OSA) and co-sponsored by OSA, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers/Communications Society (IEEE/ComSoc), and the IEEE Photonics Society. OFC/NFOEC 2013 takes place March 17 – 21 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, Calif. For more information, visit http://www.ofcnfoec.org.

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
New automated process simplifies alignment and splicing of multicore optical fibers

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Penn study: Financial incentives affect prostate cancer treatment patterns

2013-03-12
Philadelphia - According to a new study by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, prostate cancer patients of urologists who own expensive radiation equipment are more likely to receive radiation treatment in lieu of surgery than patients treated by urologists without an ownership stake in the equipment. The study, now available online in the Journal of Urology, found that integrated prostate cancer centers (IPCCs), where urology and radiation oncology practices are combined, use expensive radiation-based treatments at higher rates ...

Mystery of 'zombie worm' development unveiled

Mystery of zombie worm development unveiled
2013-03-12
How do bone-eating worms reproduce? A new study by Norio Miyamoto and colleagues from the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology sheds light on this question through a detailed observation of the postembryonic development and sexual maturation of Osedax worms, also known as "zombie worms." These worms typically inhabit vertebrate bones on the seafloor. The study is published online in Springer's journal Naturwissenschaften - The Science of Nature. Osedax is Latin for "bone-devourer," which refers to how the worms bore into the bones of whale carcasses to ...

Neural 'synchrony' may be key to understanding how the human brain perceives

Neural synchrony may be key to understanding how the human brain perceives
2013-03-12
Despite many remarkable discoveries in the field of neuroscience during the past several decades, researchers have not been able to fully crack the brain's "neural code." The neural code details how the brain's roughly 100 billion neurons turn raw sensory inputs into information we can use to see, hear and feel things in our environment. In a perspective article published in the journal Nature Neuroscience on Feb. 25, 2013, biomedical engineering professor Garrett Stanley detailed research progress toward "reading and writing the neural code." This encompasses the ability ...

4 dinosaur egg species identified in Lleida

4 dinosaur egg species identified in Lleida
2013-03-12
A study headed by the Miquel Crusafont Catalan Palaeontology Institute has for the first time documented detailed records of dinosaur egg fossils in the Coll de Nargó archaeological site in Lleida, Spain. Up until now, only one type of dinosaur egg had been documented in the region. The archaeological site in Coll de Nargó containing dinosaur eggs lies some 8 kilometres to the west of the town that bears the same name in the province of Lleida. This region is home to different types of geological formations, including the Areniscas de Arén Formation and the Tremp Formation, ...

Does expressing anger on online rant-sites make you feel better or worse?

Does expressing anger on online rant-sites make you feel better or worse?
2013-03-12
New Rochelle, NY, March 12, 2013—Little is known about the value and emotional consequences of expressing anger on the Internet. Rant-sites provide an outlet for anonymous, angry outbursts. How people feel after reading and writing rants and the effects of this behavior is explored in an article in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, (http://www.liebertpub.com/cyber) a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com). The article is available online on the Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking (http://www.liebertpub.com/cyber) ...

Young pigs prefer traditional soybean diet

2013-03-12
Des Moines, IA – Pigs aren't known for being picky, but new research shows they avoid bitter tastes when they can. In a new study of nursery pig diets, researchers from the University of Alberta offered pigs different amounts of soybean meal, napus canola meal and juncea canola meal. They found that pigs ate more soybean meal when given a choice. Napus canola meal and juncea canola meal come from rapeseed and mustard greens, respectively. Canola meals are less expensive than soybean meal. If producers can replace soybean meal in swine diets, they could produce pork ...

Updated 'stereo EEG' workflow simplifies planning of epilepsy surgery

2013-03-12
Philadelphia, Pa. (March 12, 2013) – For patients with "drug-resistant" epilepsy requiring surgery, an updated stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) technique provides a more efficient process for obtaining critical data for surgical planning, according to a study in the March issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health. "SEEG is a safe and accurate procedure for invasive assessment of the epileptogenic zone," according to the new report by Dr. ...

Some bacteria may protect against disease caused by stomach infection

2013-03-12
Half of the world's human population is infected with the stomach bacteria called Helicobacter pylori, yet it causes disease in only about 10 percent of those infected. Other bacteria living in the stomach may be a key factor in whether or not H. pylori causes disease, according to a new study led by scientists at the University of California, Santa Cruz. "People tend to think of the stomach as a relatively sterile environment, but it's actually populated with microbes," said Karen Ottemann, professor and chair of microbiology and environmental toxicology at UC Santa ...

Nearly a third of antibiotic prescriptions for dialysis patients inappropriate

2013-03-12
Patients who receive hemodialysis are at a significant risk of developing infections, a leading cause of hospitalization and death in this patient population. A new study highlights the need to improve antibiotic use in outpatient dialysis facilities as data shows nearly a third of antibiotic prescriptions are deemed inappropriate. The study is published in the April issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. The United States Renal Data System reported that from 1993 to 2010, the number of ...

Computer model may help athletes and soldiers avoid brain damage and concussions

Computer model may help athletes and soldiers avoid brain damage and concussions
2013-03-12
Concussions can occur in sports and in combat, but health experts do not know precisely which jolts, collisions and awkward head movements during these activities pose the greatest risks to the brain. To find out, Johns Hopkins engineers have developed a powerful new computer-based process that helps identify the dangerous conditions that lead to concussion-related brain injuries. This approach could lead to new medical treatment options and some sports rule changes to reduce brain trauma among players. The research comes at a time when greater attention is being paid ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Individuals with multiple sclerosis face substantially greater risk of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19, despite high rates of vaccination

Study shows obesity in childhood associated with a more than doubling of risk of developing multiple sclerosis in early adulthood

Rice Emerging Scholars Program receives $2.5M NSF grant to boost STEM education

Virtual rehabilitation provides benefits for stroke recovery

Generative AI develops potential new drugs for antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Biofuels could help island nations survive a global catastrophe, study suggests

NJIT research team discovering how fluids behave in nanopores with NSF grant

New study shows association of historical housing discrimination and shortfalls in colon cancer treatment

Social media use may help to empower plastic surgery patients

Q&A: How to train AI when you don't have enough data

Wayne State University researchers uncover potential treatment targets for Zika virus-related eye abnormalities

Discovering Van Gogh in the wild: scientists unveil a new gecko species

Small birds spice up the already diverse diet of spotted hyenas in Namibia

Imaging detects transient “hypoxic pockets” in the mouse brain

Dissolved organic matter could be used to track and improve the health of freshwaters

Indoor air quality standards in public buildings would boost health and economy, say international experts

Positive associations between premenstrual disorders and perinatal depression

New imaging method illuminates oxygen's journey in the brain

Researchers discover key gene for toxic alkaloid in barley

New approach to monitoring freshwater quality can identify sources of pollution, and predict their effects

Bidirectional link between premenstrual disorders and perinatal depression

Cell division quality control ‘stopwatch’ uncovered

Vaccine protects cattle from bovine tuberculosis, may eliminate disease

Andrew Siemion to receive the SETI Institute’s 2024 Drake Award

New study shows how the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus enters our cells

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy proves effective for locally advanced penile squamous cell carcinoma

Study flips treatment paradigm in bilateral Wilms tumor, shows resistance to chemotherapy may point toward favorable outcomes

Doctors received approximately $12.1 billion from drug and device makers between 2013-2022

Discovery suggests new strategy against follicular lymphoma

Making the future too bright: how wishful thinking can point us in the wrong direction

[Press-News.org] New automated process simplifies alignment and splicing of multicore optical fibers
Technique reported at OFC/NFOEC 2013 takes splicing out of the lab, into the production line